911 call properly admitted as evidence, COA affirms
A 911 call placed by a witness who didn’t actually testify was properly admitted, the Court of Appeals of Indiana has affirmed, also finding sufficient evidence.
Court opinions
Articles
COA reverses transfer of venue in adoption case
A trial court improperly transferred venue in an adoption case, the Court of Appeals of Indiana ruled in a Thursday reversal.
Opinions Sept. 28, 2023
Court of Appeals of Indiana
Elijah Colon Cruz v. State of Indiana
22A-CR-383
Criminal. Affirms Elijah Colon Cruz’s conviction of Level 4 felony unlawful possession of a firearm by a serious violent felon. Finds the Marion Superior Court did not abuse its discretion in the admission of evidence. Also finds sufficient evidence supported the conviction.
COA affirms, reverses trial courts’ judgments on what can be submitted to medical review panels
Plaintiffs claiming they were injured by steroid injections are not entitled to summary judgment on their state or federal prescription-law claims, the Court of Appeals of Indiana has ruled.
Man who shot into neighbor’s house loses appeal of convictions, sentence
A man who shot a gun into his neighbor’s house has failed in his attempt to convince the Court of Appeals of Indiana to overturn his convictions or five-year sentence.
No error occurred in allowing jury to view previously viewed exhibits in robbery case, COA affirms
A trial court’s decision to allow a jury to view four previously viewed exhibits in a felony robbery trial did not constitute fundamental error, the Court of Appeals of Indiana affirmed Wednesday.
Man failed to show statutory requirements for expungement of DCS records that proved juvenile child molesting allegations, COA affirms
Indiana law didn’t back up a man’s contention that a trial court should expunge Indiana Department of Child Services records substantiating his molestation of his sisters, the Court of Appeals of Indiana affirmed Wednesday.
Opinions Sept. 27, 2023
Ricky L. Wilson v. State of Indiana
22A-CR-2837
Criminal. Affirms Ricky Wilson’s convictions of Level 5 felony criminal recklessness, Level 6 felony escape and Level 6 felony possession of cocaine, and his sentence to four years executed with one year suspended to probation. Finds sufficient evidence to support the convictions. Also finds Wilson’s sentence is not inappropriate.
Indiana Court Decisions: Sept. 7-20, 2023
Read the latest Indiana appellate court decisions from the most recent reporting period.
Company’s repairs of damaged outdoor billboard did not result in sign being ‘relocated,’ IN Supreme Court affirms
A Noblesville ordinance’s language for sign relocation was ambiguous with its usage of “relocate” and “move,” the Indiana Supreme Court affirmed Monday in upholding a trial court’s judgment in favor of an outdoor signage company.
IN Supreme Court finds hospital entitled to partial summary judgment on negligence claim, but not public disclosure, after patient’s diagnosis was posted to social media
A hospital sued after a woman’s diagnosis was mailed to the wrong person and subsequently posted to social media secured a partial victory at the Indiana Supreme Court.
COA: Trial court committed reversible error in not setting case for jury trial
A trial court committed reversible error when it proceeded to a bench trial rather than setting the case for a jury trial after the defendant was discharged from a pretrial agreement, the Court of Appeals of Indiana has ruled.
COA remands for fuller analysis of woman’s Medicaid eligibility
An administrative law judge’s analysis of a woman’s irrevocable trust as it relates to her Medicaid nursing home benefits eligibility was incomplete, the Court of Appeals of Indiana ruled in a Tuesday reversal.
Opinions Sept. 26, 2023
Court of Appeals of Indiana
Maggie E. Winans v. State of Indiana
23A-CR-80
Criminal. Reverses Maggie Winans’ convictions of Class A misdemeanor domestic battery and Class A misdemeanor resisting law enforcement. Finds the Cass Superior Court committed reversible error when it failed to reset the matter for a jury trial after Winans’ pretrial diversion agreement was terminated. Remands for a jury trial.
Split IN Supreme Court rules state law limits corporate contributions to super PACs
Indiana election law’s silence on corporate contributions to independent-expenditure political action committees means such contributions are prohibited or otherwise limited, a split Indiana Supreme Court has ruled.
Opinions Sept. 25, 2023
Court of Appeals of Indiana
Robert J. Plato v. State of Indiana
23A-PC-452
Post-conviction relief. Affirms the Madison Circuit Court’s judgment that Robert Plato did not have ineffective assistance of appellate counsel. Finds the post-conviction court did not err and that Detective LeeAnn Dwiggins acted within the scope of the warrant when she seized Plato’s computer. Judge Rudolph Pyle dissents with a separate opinion.
Opinions Sept. 22, 2023
Court of Appeals of Indiana
Christopher Meadows v. State of Indiana (mem. dec.)
23A-CR-974
Criminal. Affirms Christopher Meadows’ conviction for Class A operating a vehicle while intoxicated. Finds the Decatur Superior Court did not abuse its discretion in admitting evidence garnered from a search warrant affidavit that was not submitted in reckless disregard for the truth.
Opinions Sept. 21, 2023
7th Circuit Court of Appeals
Thomas A. Russell, M.D., et.al. v. Zimmer, Inc.
22-2529
Appeal from the United States District Court for the Northern District of Indiana. Senior Judge Theresa L. Springmann.
Civil. Affirms the dismissal of Thomas Russell and other plaintiffs’ breach claim against Zimmer Inc., finding the plaintiffs had failed to state a viable claim for relief. Finds the complaint did not state a plausible claim that Zimmer failed to use commercially reasonable efforts to sell the earnout products. Also finds the district court did not abuse its discretion in denying the motion to amend the complaint a second time.
Distributor made ‘commercially reasonable’ efforts to sell products, 7th Circuit affirms
A group of medical device firm shareholders failed to show that a distributor didn’t make a reasonable effort to sell their products, the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed Thursday.
Senate hopeful Rust says state law requiring candidates to vote in party’s previous primaries is unconstitutional
A would-be Republican candidate for U.S. Senate is challenging an Indiana law that would keep him off next year’s GOP primary ballot based on his previous voting record.